The Washington Nuclear Engineering Student Delegation

Dane de Wet

Dane de Wet recently graduated with his B.S. in Nuclear Engineering from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. During his time at UT, he researched instrumentation and controls for advanced reactors under Dr. Belle R. Upadhyaya where he designed flow loops that utilized innovative instrumentation and control techniques. He also worked for Dr. Howard Hall and Dr. Joe Stainback at the Institute for Nuclear Security where he focused on international safeguards and implementing nuclear power programs in newcomer countries. As part of his research, he helped design safeguards for molten salt reactors. He then moved on to modeling the neutronics of a molten salt breeder reactor based on the original designs by Oak Ridge National Laboratory. After graduating, he moved over to Oak Ridge National Laboratory as an intern where he is helping develop a thermal hydraulic model of the original Molten Salt Reactor Experiment in order to help restore modeling capabilities for MSRs as part of an effort in developing the next generation of nuclear power plants. He will be attending the UC Berkeley in the fall, where he will be pursuing his Ph.D. in nuclear engineering as a NEUP Fellow. Dane also enjoys messing with 3D printers, traveling, and hiking in the Smoky Mountains.